Senioritis: The Why

Senior year is a year that some would argue is the best of your entire High School career. The first three years are the inconveniences that guide you to the great (or not-so-great), rewards of the final year. From applying to college, to getting those final credits it seems that every year seniors get sick. They get sick with a very contagious disease, and it can do a lot of harm. Symptoms may include, skipping, solid Cs, and not paying attention in class. This disease is Senioritis.

Now, senioritis is not all that bad. In fact, it is to be expected. High School has its ups and downs’, and I think it is important to note that most seniors realize the importance of their final year. Obviously for teachers though, Senioritis is a problem. The big question on most teacher’s minds is why do students get Senioritis? It’s the why that I am here to answer as a student that has been weaving in and out of Senioritis. There are many reasons that students get Senioritis, but for me there are three key reasons as to why this disease has infected me.

The first reason is the work. As a freshman, sophomore or junior, I would have never complained about the work that teachers give. For me, I thought of that work as a small piece of my GPA. For every assignment I do, I get a grade for it. For every grade I get for each class, it counts as a number. For every number I get, that counts towards my GPA. However, as a senior, my GPA means a lot less to me now. I have finished applying to the colleges I am interested in going to, and I simply do not want to be bothered with busy work anymore. I am a student who likes engaging work that gets people thinking and exposes them to new ideas. Busy work to me has, and always will be a waste of time. Most of the work senior year is simply busy work. It is work that is designed to make you show up to classes that you might not show up to otherwise. For me, this makes me want to be even more done with High School.

The second reason is maturity. Now this might not be one for everybody, but it is for me. High school is a time of growth, and people start to discover themselves and who they are in the world. There is a large maturity gap from freshman to seniors. Freshman cannot drive a car, make any of their own decisions, or buy any tobacco products and are limited in what jobs they can do. In essence, they are still a kid. However, most seniors can buy a firearm, vote, serve their country, drive any time of the day, buy tobacco products, work a wide variety of jobs, and make their own decisions as a legal adult. The difference in those choices is crazy, that one is an adult and the other is still a child, by four or three years. You might have a different definition of an adult, and I do too. But for the sake of this article, I am saying it is simply eighteen years old. When you look at this, most seniors get easily annoyed with freshman. They find them immature and annoying. No surprise there, and I do realize they all are not bad. However, seniors do not want to deal with what they classify as children. This is another reason most seniors are ready to move on to college.

The third and final reason is fun. By the time you are a senior, you just want to enjoy the last year of living expense free and hanging out with your friends. School takes that away from you by treating you the same as freshman who need a guiding hand in certain aspects. I do not know how others feel, but I personally feel Apex is a sleepy town. There is not a ton to do, and besides bowling, ice skating, or eating fast food, you are basically out of luck. Most colleges and their towns have plenty to do. Seniors are ready to move on to their next chapter of life and have more freedom than ever. I am sure most adults can relate to always wanting more freedom as a kid, and this is the final stop before that final bit of freedom is granted.

Sure, senioritis is not fun for teachers and students’ parents. However, you have to understand why it happens. We are not trying to disrespect you or cause problems. We simply want to move on to the next chapter of our lives.